Birthday
by Leni
Summary: You know, once upon a time they were kids.


_**DISCLAIMER:** raises eyebrow  
**WORDCOUNT:** 1471  
**SUMMARY:** Winry's ninth birthday. You know, once upon a time, they were just kids.  
**DEDICATION:** To Ragna (**goddessloki**). Supposedly, this should have been written for Xmas, but since RL is evil, I decided to write it for your birthday. And even them I'm late. hides Anyway, Happy Birthday! You asked for 'Winry, at any point in the series before Ed and Al go become State Alchemists.' Hm, so I picked childhood-fic! g  
**FEEDBACK:** grin  
**THANK YOU:** To Dana (**cornerofmadness**) for the beta. happy grin_

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**BIRTHDAY**

_by Leni_

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There was a second of utter disbelief.

Then: "ED!"

Winry stalked out of the river, getting madder as she realised that her new dress was in ruins.

Ed had obviously run for safety as soon as she hit the water. Now out of her reach a good ten meters away, he was smirking from ear to ear. "Happy birthday, Winry!" he shouted to her.

Winry reddened. Ed had always been one for silly pranks. She should have _known_ not to trust him when he announced that he had a surprise. Some surprise! Trusting Edward Elric meant wet and muddy dresses, Winry noted to herself.

"Brother, maybe you overdid this tim... uh, hi Winry!"

Her head had whipped up at the second voice. Al?

Under her scrutiny, the smaller boy fidgeted, clearly uncomfortable. But he still didn't move from Ed's side. "Happy birthday?"

Winry glared. Ed, she could understand. But now Al, too?

Al tried to smile apologetically, and the result was far more believable than his brother's. Not that Ed even tried to look apologetic at all, but Winry had seen his attempts before and she'd decided long ago that Elrics weren't made to apologise. "We do have your present at home," Al said, obviously trying to placate her. "We even picked it ourselves!"

But she was in no mood to be placated. Winry tilted her head to a side, and could feel water running out of her ears. No, Al's words weren't helping at all. "And this was what?"

He blushed and his eyes widened in that innocent look he'd mastered over years as Ed's second in these pranks. "Ed's idea?"

The blonde boy grinned ever wider, looking proud at that.

Winry's hands made a fist as she took a step forward. With all the energy her recent nine years old gave her, Winry shook her fist warningly. "You'll pay for this, Ed!"

Ed raised an eyebrow and nudged his brother. "Al?" The other boy turned to him. "Run." Ed glanced at Winry's advances and began to do just that. "Now!" he shouted at a still unmoving Al.

Al looked at Winry and gulped. "Wait for meeeeee!"

Indeed Ed slowed a little so that his brother could catch up. Then they turned around simultaneously, saw Winry racing after them and nodded at each other before sprinting faster down the road.

Weighed down by her drenched dress, Winry was unsuccessful in trapping her prey. Frustrated, she screamed after them. "Stop right there! Stay quiet so I can hit you!"

Only Ed's laughter answered, and he certainly didn't stop. Al looked backwards, just to make sure that she was alright, and Winry was surprised to find an amused expression in his face. So far, he'd always been the innocent party in Ed's 'fun' ideas. Many times before Al had been the one to talk Winry out of righteous rage, thus giving his brother time to outrun her wrath. Other times, even though he hadn't done anything wrong, Al would still loyally run at Ed's side through the forest in an effort to escape her. This time, the younger Elric didn't look innocent at all.

Winry scowled at the two running figures in front of her and kicked against the grass. As if it wasn't enough that Ed had pushed her into the river, now he was a bad influence on his little brother, too?

---

That night Trisha Elric brought her two boys over to congratulate Winry on her birthday. Neither looked the least sheepish about their deeds that morning; only Al fidgeted a little before greeting her. It went unspoken that Winry wouldn't tell on them. They'd always worked out their problems without adults, and she already had an idea or two of how to get back at them.

Truth be told, she wasn't as mad anymore. Yes, her dress was a goner but the brothers had done worse in the years they've played together. The last of her anger dissipated when Winry unwrapped the wooden box they presented her. It had beautiful, elegant carvings of leaves and flowers at the sides. On the lid, it showed a scene of flying fairies, painted gracefully in short, sharp strokes of a darker brown. She guessed Al's taste in the carvings; he had always taken to nature and animals. Ed's choice was clear in the painting; its succinct style was something Winry would easily apply to him.

"The shopkeeper said it was for jewelry," Ed began, and he rolled his eyes a little. "As if we'd buy _that_ for you."

Winry was sure that was supposed to be a compliment, so she let it go.

Al elbowed his brother's side and pointed to Winry's necklace. Ed rolled his eyes and added a sigh; Winry let him. It was Granny who'd insisted that she looked 'pretty' for the occasion. Smiling, Al nodded towards her gift. "We guessed it'd be big enough for some of your tools."

Now Winry grinned. She'd liked the box, but until Al said it, she hadn't even thought that she'd really use it. The boys weren't wrong. Not that a hammer or a set of pliers would fit in, but it looked perfect for the wrench Granny had just given her. She ran to the center table and picked it up, then opened the box and yes, it _was_ perfect.

Suddenly inspiration - or revenge? - hit, and she smiled as she glanced from the wrench to the boys. The smile turned into a smirk when her eyes settled on Ed, then back to the tool. Slowly, she took hold of her grandmother's gift, left the box in Al's hands and walked up to Ed, all the while smiling very sweetly. She was still smiling as he yelped half in pain and half in surprise.

"Winry!"

She just blinked innocently at Granny's scolding, and a second afterwards she was running up the stairs as she escaped from a seething Ed. Used to these antics, the older women only shook her head and Pinako invited Trisha into the kitchen for some tea.

After the second slammed door, Al shouted for them both to quiet down, but neither heeded him. From room to room and in and out of closets the chase continued. Winry had no advantage, since Ed knew the house as well as she did. The only thing working in her favour was that she was that couple of centimeters smaller and it was easier to crawl under tables and beds.

When they came back downstairs, Winry was still laughing and even Ed had forgotten the pain and a smile fleeted across his face. With a tug, he recruited his little brother to his side. "Stay right there, Winry!"

Winry only poked her tongue out at the brothers.

---

Later, as she went to sleep, Winry's eyebrows shot up at the unexpected object on her bed.

Her dress. The dress she'd used that morning.

She hadn't noticed it earlier. How could she when she had first one and then _two_ Elric boys in her pursuit?

But there it was. Winry held it up for inspection and gasped. Instead of being ragged, dirty and practically irreparable, now the dress seemed to have just been taken from the store. She hadn't really minded earlier; again, it'd been Granny's idea that she dressed differently today. Had it been her overalls instead, the brothers would still be feeling the bite of her wrench. But... still. They hadn't needed to repair it.

She shook her head, smiling softly to herself. Elrics and their precious alchemy. They were getting better, too. As she examined the cloth, she could see the proof of their improvement. There was no trace of the rips and scuffs. Sure, a button was still missing and the embroidery looked a bit crooked to the right, but otherwise it was perfect.

Hugging the dress to her body, Winry sat on her bed. What a perfect birthday. The boys may be troublesome and too loud, but she couldn't imagine being nine years old without Ed's pranks, Al's laughter and her grandmother finally accepting her as her official apprentice. Then Winry giggled. She would never remember this birthday without picturing Ed's look of utter disbelief as she used that wrench for the first time. Tit for tat, she thought happily as she walked to her closet.

Before, she would have placed the dress in the darkest corner, with the other girly outfits, but now she put it front and center. Her shirts and shorts would understand, at least for the next couple of days.

As she drew the covers over her body, Winry smiled again. She'd forgotten the wooden box on her nightstand. She reached a hand towards it and traced the leaves and flowers, could picture the painting in her head.

It was perfect.

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**The End**  
24/01/06

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